The present invention relates to automatic analyzer and more particularly to an automatic analyzer for use with a biochemical examination or immunity examination wherein a train of reaction containers turns across an optical path of a photometer.
A conventional automatic analyzer, for example, disclosed in JP-B2-59-22905, is effective in that no extracting and injecting mechanism is required to be provided for each of the reagents and only two extracting and injecting mechanisms are used to thereby simplify the mechanism. Another case, JP-A-6-88828, discloses an automatic analyzer in which, in order to prevent contamination between reagents and to improve the processing ability of the analyzer so that all reactions are carried out in parallel in the same time, reaction containers are disposed in a doubly or triply concentric circle with the respective trains of reaction containers being independent of each other, wherein each of the reaction containers is washed in each reactive process to thereby achieve a continuos process. One embodiment of those analyzers is disclosed in Japanese registered design No. 782418.
In the conventional analyzers, their miniaturization has not been studied, so that they each occupy a large space. Reduction in the measurement time and diversification of measurement items has been studied, but no arrangement of a control panel which controls the analyzer and a display device has been studied. Thus, they are not satisfactory in terms of easy operation, safety and/or prevention of misoperations.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic analyzer which is miniaturized so as to be easily carried and whose components are rationally arranged so that they are safe and easily operated.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a display method for an automatic analyzer in which an instruction can be inputted to a display unit while watching same.
One of the measures for solving the above problem is to provide an automatic analyzer comprising specimen containing means, reagent containing means, extracting and injecting means, and analysis means, wherein a specimen is reacting with a reagent in a reaction container, the reacted reaction liquid is analyzed by the analysis means, the specimen containing means and the reagent containing means are disposed in an oblique manner in a this side area of the analyzer, the reaction container is disposed backward from the specimen containing means and the reagent containing means between the specimen containing means and the reagent containing means.
Another one of the means for solving the problem is to provide covers for covering separately the specimen holding means, reagent holding means and extracting and injecting means.
Still another one of the means for solving the problem is to dispose an input/output device for an automatic analyzer with display means for displaying information on the analyzer, on this side of the reagent holding means.
In the above-mentioned one of the means for solving the problem, the distance between any two of the specimen holding means, the reagent holding means and the reaction container are substantially minimum. As a result, the specimen extracting and injecting means and the reagent extracting and injecting means are arranged in a compact manner. In addition, by disposing the input/output device on this side of the reagent holding means, the components of the automatic analyzer are arranged in a compact manner in transverse and deep directions, so that the input/output device can be manipulated while a specimen is being set, easy operation is performed, and high safety is ensured.